Horizons
by TaikoHawk
Summary: Sequel to 'Perchance to Dream', 'Ravel, Unravel', and 'Shades'. Tying up the loose ends, kicking some political butt, and redefining Konoha. Includes many characters in five different flashfics showing the aftermath of 'Shades'.
1. Chapter 1

_TH: As promised, the mini-sequel. This will be my last installment in the 'Dream' Universe I've created (Perchance to Dream; Ravel, Unravel; Shades; Horizons). Hopefully it takes care of some of the lingering problems people might have been wondering about._

_For 'Horizons'... it will be treated much the same as 'Ravel, Unravel' was. Five flash-fic chapters. I'll post a new one every day, starting today._

_Please, please, please review! I really love hearing from you guys!  
_

_Thanks to MakalaMea for betaing!  
_

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**Horizons

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**.****I.

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Short days ago, two armies passed under the tall trees for which Konohagakure no Sato was named. One was led by a war hawk as ambitious as he was militant: Shimura Danzo. His army was composed of his personal force called Root, and their supporters. They marched to wage war on a group called Genshi, who were survivors of the old Konoha and followers of the _elected _Godaime Hokage, Senju Tsunade. Genshi was a thorn in Danzo's side because they were actively working to undermine his position of power, and because they were proof against his many lies, not the least of which were that the most notable of Genshi's members were dead and that Tsunade had refused the Hokage's hat. Danzo took his army to eliminate the threat that Genshi posed.

The second army's battle started even before it left the gates of Konoha. Composed of all the ninja left in the Village who still possessed what was called the Will of Fire, this second army was a dissident army. An army opposing Danzo's rule and Danzo's vision of what Konoha should be. Led by the Heads of the loyal Clans, this army first waged war on the small Root force Danzo had set to keep order in the Village. Those who surrendered were imprisoned, those who did not were killed. And those ninja who were loyal to Konoha's Will of Fire took control once more of their Village. Their war began with a victory, but it was as yet unclear how it would end.

The second army marched out of Konoha the same day Danzo's did, and took the same path. Their objective was to aid their brethren in Genshi to defeat Danzo's Root, thus regaining _their _Konoha, the true Konoha.

But with two armies fielded, and another fraction of its fighting force either imprisoned or dead, Konoha was left with only a skeleton crew for defense. The civilians were still there, surely, but nearly all of the able-bodied ninja were out-of-Village, engaged in war.

_Nearly _all. Some Chuunin and Jounin remained, ostensibly to guard Konoha against any opportunists seeking to destroy or lay claim on the all-but-deserted Village. And, of course, the Genin were there, having been deemed too young or inexperienced to be part of the marching army. But the Genin were also too young and too inexperienced to be out on B-ranked missions like patrol duty.

_:To be fair,: _Umino Iruka interrupted his own reverie, _:I am an Academy Instructor and do not accept missions as an active ninja, and so therefore should not be out on patrol duty either.:_

And yet, here he was, leaping through the treetops outside of the Village's walls, checking their boundaries and the patrol area. And there Tokishiki Moegi and Uzuki Udon were, right behind him as his Genin Teammates on this patrol. He was hyper-aware of their presence, tense and worried. Not only because they could very well be attacked out here, but also because he wondered exactly which army would be marching back to Konoha, and what would happen if it _wasn't _Genshi.

He suppressed a shudder at the thought, and turned his attention back to his surroundings.

It was a beautiful day, ironically enough. The sun was bright and there was a gentle breeze blowing, rustling the leaves. The soft susurration was the only disturbance in the otherwise quiet forest.

Iruka froze and threw up a hand, halting Moegi and Udon in their tracks. He might not usually go on missions, but Iruka wasn't an idiot, and had never let his skills get rusty. The forest was usually filled with trilling birdsong. If it was quiet, that meant there was something out there to silence the birds.

Iruka's hand drifted to his kunai pouch, and he closed his fingers over the handle of one weapon, the cool weight a comfort in his grip. He flicked a hand signal at his two Genin companions, and they obediently slid backwards into obscuring leaves. Iruka remained out in the open, and readied himself to challenge the owner of the chakra signature he could sense approaching.

He didn't have to wait long. A few seconds after Moegi and Udon had hidden themselves, a slim, black-clad figure lit upon a branch not too far away. Close enough for Iruka to see that she was female, and wore a cowl, full mask, and a Konoha _hitai-ate_.

_:Friend or foe?: _he wondered uneasily, but strictly maintained his outward façade of confidence. The hand holding the kunai lifted into a ready position.

"Halt!" he said definitively. "Identify yourself!"

The kunoichi had frozen as well, her mask tilted in his direction. Slowly, she straightened from her coiled stance, and raised her hands, palms out, fingers spread to show she was unarmed.

That wasn't saying much, for a ninja. Iruka kept his kunai ready. The kunoichi used slow, deliberate motions so as not to alarm him, and reached for her cowl and mask.

Iruka nearly fumbled his kunai in surprise, but his training held and he remained steady as wide green eyes and vibrant pink hair was revealed. He never forgot a student.

"Haruno Sakura?"

There was a smile growing on the young woman's face.

"Iruka-sensei!" she exclaimed, "Naruto will be so glad to see you!"

The blond's name was like an electric jolt to his brain. Naruto and Sakura were two of the half-dozen or so that Danzo had claimed died long ago but who were, in fact, part of the nucleus of Genshi. If they were here, it meant…

It meant that Genshi was here. That Genshi had won.

Iruka did drop his kunai, this time.


	2. Chapter 2

_TH: Ahem. I was stupid yesterday and posted the wrong chapter at first. For a while, what had been up as 'chapter one' was actually ALL the chapters. So if you're reading this and thinking it sounds awfully familiar, it's because you were one of the people who got to Chapter One before I'd fixed it. Sorry, but nothing new here. It was just my bad. ^_^;;  
_

_Thanks to MakalaMea for betaing!  
_

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**Horizons

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**.II.

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The Department had gone all to hell as soon as Danzo had left with his army. A little under half of the workers had been conscripted into the force and had marched out to seek glory on the battlefield, leaving a very diminished workforce to take care of things in the offices. But the remaining (_not _cowardly, but _wise_) desk ninja were not at all motivated to do any work for that… that _pretender_-Hokage Danzo.

Kaname Junmai would agree, completely, that Shimura Danzo was not supposed to be Hokage. He would quite happily wish good luck to all those battle-ninja who had marched out after Danzo's army, intent on helping Genshi and opposing Danzo. But he would not march out with them. Nor would he abide the shirking of duty while both armies were out of the Village. Just because the head of the Village was a fraud and warmonger didn't mean they should all cut off their noses, to use the metaphor. Sure, it would give Danzo something unpleasant to look at, but it would also inconvenience _them_.

Junmai would do his work, because it was still work that might keep the Village safe, no matter what man called himself Hokage.

…Even if that man was intolerably condescending to Intelligence ninja. Like they were somehow _lesser _than those block-head fighters. Hmph.

The other workers in the Department were getting louder in their conversation again, all of them lounging around the office as if it were a lounge.

"Would you…" Junmai started, but it was obvious his voice was too quiet to penetrate the noise. He cleared his throat and tried again, louder: "Would you all just be quiet and get back to work?"

His compatriots blinked at him. One of the more insolent of them—Junmai noted with a sniff that he was a younger man—asked: "Why should we? It's possible that the work we do now will go on to help the imposter."

Junmai drew himself up, ignored the very quietly murmured _'oh great, now you've done it; we get to hear a Kaname-speech'_ from his audience, and began enlightening the foolish youngster as to his error.

"Even if Danzo-san is a false Hokage, this is still Konoha. We are still doing this work to prevent enemies from being able to hurt the Village. The civilians are innocent of this, you know! And, furthermore—"

Junmai's lecture was interrupted abruptly just as he was getting ready for the big, impassioned main argument. The door to the Intelligence Department offices exploded open—and that wording was not just a dramatic exaggeration from Kaname Junmai's mind. The door was supposed to be secured, double-locked against any wandering visitors to the Hokage's Tower, with reinforced hinges. There was a core of iron inside the wood finish.

But it was evidently not as secure as they all thought. The door was blasted from its frame by some tremendous force, shattering the outer wood and buckling the iron core. There were some alarmed cries from the Department workers, and they all gaped in shock as a buxom blonde woman stepped through the wreckage of the door to scan them with amber eyes.

There was silence in the office.

The woman nodded as if pleased with this reaction, and lifted a hand.

"You, you, and you. Come with me. There's work for you to do," she said, pointing firmly at three of the Intel ninja present. They responded automatically to the authority in her voice and moved forward.

"W-w-wait just a moment!" Junmai had regained the use of his tongue and stood up from his desk, frowning. He was one of the senior-most ninja in the Department, and since the other two didn't seem to be doing anything about this… this impudence, it fell to him to be in charge. "Just who do you think you are, charging in here and snatching away my workers?"

The blonde woman had turned to lead the way out of the room, but had stopped at the sound of Junmai's voice. Now, very slowly, she was turning around. The other Intel ninja were watching nervously, eyes flicking between her and Junmai.

Her eyebrows were raised. She asked: "Who am I?"

Junmai nodded, lifting his chin. He wouldn't let her cow him; he was right to demand an explanation!

"I am Senju Tsunade, the Slug Sannin, leader of Genshi, and—" her lips curled to show a bit of tooth in a feral smirk "—I am going to be your Hokage."

She…the… Oh, dear.

Kaname Junmai quailed, his face paling dramatically. His mouth opened as if he might say something more, but his eyes rolled back in his head and he fainted dead away.

It was an incident that would become a legend within the Intelligence Department.

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_TH: Poor Kaname-san! His heart's in the right place, he just doesn't have to be such an arrogant $& about it. Anyway, to those of you who enjoyed his character in 'Ravel, Unravel'- hope I revisited his character well here. This chapter's for you._


	3. Chapter 3

_TH: Time for some political butt kicking.  
_

_Thanks to MakalaMea for betaing!  
_

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**Horizons

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**.III.

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The first thing Naruto wanted to do when he returned to Konoha was to go to Ichiraku Ramen and eat himself into a food-coma.

It was the first thing he _wanted _to do, but unfortunately it was not the first thing he did.

As a member of Team Seven, the team that had been sent out to carry the offer of the Godaime Hokage's positon to Senju Tsunade, and thus as one of the people who had been at the heart of Genshi and who was something of a mascot for the group, Naruto had political expectations. So, the first thing Naruto did upon returning to Konoha was sit in on the Council that had been swiftly assembled—Tsunade had determined that it was best they installed her as the Hokage right away so that nobody could challenge her authority when she exerted it in the war tribunal she was going to call immediately upon gaining the hat.

It was a boring and annoying job for Naruto. Basically all he did was stand behind Tsunade's chair at the great round-table—on her left hand, since Sakura stood at her right—and watch. And try to look solemn and respectable—a high order for someone who became twitchy when he couldn't move. But Naruto wasn't as much of an idiot as he acted; he knew this Council was going to be important, and the war tribunal afterwards even more so. So he bit the inside of his cheek and did his best Sasuke impression.

The Council was comprised of Village Elders, all of whom had been given their positions by Danzo, and the Heads of all the major clans. Sasuke himself stood at his mother's right. She was the Clan Head, and Sasuke was the Clan Heir, Itachi having abdicated the position due to some clan politics that had resulted from the clan's failed coup attempt years ago. The Nara, Akimichi, Yamanaka, Aburame, and Inuzuka Clan Heads were also in attendance, some with their designated Heirs beside them as well.

Naruto could see that there was one chair open. It was obvious from one look around the room who was missing. Hinata. The soft-spoken Hyuuga Heiress whose father had made the decision to side with Danzo. He, and a large portion of his Clan, had died for it in the Battle of _Chi no Mori_.

It was like the Uchiha Clan all over again; the keepers of the Sharingan had once been a proud clan, infamous in the ninja world for their prowess. They had been one of the founding clans of Konoha, and had remained a very influential part of the Village for generations. But they had become greedy for more power, resentful of the bonds of loyalty that they claimed held them back. And now what had once been a Clan of fifty-nine numbered eight.

The Hyuuga Clan, which had been the second-most powerful clan in Konoha after the Uchiha, had stepped into the vacuum the Uchiha had left after the failed coup attempt. They had reigned supreme over Konoha's ninja clans by virtue of their numbers and their _doujutsu_, the Byakugan. But then, apparently, they had also been gripped by greed. They had sided with Danzo for the promise of even more power.

And now what had once been a Clan of seventy-three numbered twenty-one.

Naruto wondered if maybe there was a curse of ninja clans that as soon as they got powerful and big enough, they all went crazy. What he'd witnessed so far in his life seemed to corroborate the theory.

The Council was sitting in terse silence, and the three desk-ninja Tsunade had kidnapped to act as recorders were squirming uneasily in their seats in the corner, fiddling with the paper and pens they'd been given for their job. Naruto almost grinned, remembering their wide, confused and frightened looks as Tsunade had herded them into the council chamber. They'd looked like they were about to be court-martialed.

The door to the chamber opened, and Naruto's attention sharpened on the three figures that appeared in its frame. Hyuuga Hinata, Hyuuga Neji, and the eldest of the surviving Hyuuga, a Main Branch member who had fought with the Sandaime in the First Shinobi War.

Hinata's eyes had a slight redness to them that hinted at recent tears, but her face was composed and her chin level. She, flanked by the two other Hyuuga, walked with great aplomb to the Hyuuga chair at the council table, and sat.

As if on cue, everyone present looked to Tsunade, who stood.

"Greetings from Senju Tsunade, granddaughter of Senju Hashirama, Shodai Hokage, grandniece of Senju Tobirama, Nidaime Hokage, and elected candidate for the Godaime Hokage position," she said. The three recorders' pens scratched quickly at paper, writing down everything that was said and done.

"The Uchiha Clan acknowledges the identity of Senju Tsunade," said Sasuke's mother over the soft sound of writing.

"The Hyuuga Clan acknowledges the identity of Senju Tsunade," said Hinata.

"The Nara Clan acknowledges the identity of Senju Tsunade," Nara Shikaku said, and then Yamanaka Inoichi and Akimichi Chouza echoed it. The Inuzuka Clan acknowledged Tsunade then, followed by the rest of the Clans at the table.

Tsunade turned to the half of the table at which the Elders sat, and gestured. "Do the Elders hear and accept the Clans' acknowledgements?"

Some of the Elders looked sour about it, but since they had no real reason to deny that she was Senju Tsunade, the Elders' speaker said: "The Elders hear and accept. You are acknowledged as Senju Tsunade."

Tsunade smiled sharply. "Thank you. I put forward to the Council the deception of Shimura Danzo, illegitimate Godaime Hokage, and my own legal claim at this time to the Hokage's seat."

Danzo's bought Elders all gave an outcry of protestation, but Nara Shikaku slammed his fist down on the table, cutting them off abruptly. He said, in a loud, definitive growl: "The Council will proceed in the customary order!"

The Elders subsided, but not without grumblings. Tsunade waited until there was silence, and then she held out her hand, apparently to empty air.

There was a flicker, and then one of the four ANBU who stood, hidden, around the room appeared beside her. Naruto recognized the Crow mask. Uchiha Itachi. All four of the ANBU had been Genshi, and were trustworthy, but Naruto felt reassured by the presence of Itachi.

The Uchiha held a stack of papers, which he placed in Tsunade's waiting hand before bowing and vanishing back to his guard position. Tsunade dropped the stack on the table with a hefty thump. "These are reports and documents that I… _requisitioned_ from Danzo's desk in Root Headquarters. They are my evidence that Danzo interfered with the selection process of the Godaime Hokage. He claimed that I had refused the seat, but this was false. He claimed that the Kyuubi Jinchuuriki Uzumaki Naruto went mad and killed his Team before being killed himself. This was also false. What is true is that he ordered the Root complement that accompanied Team Seven five years ago to deliver the Council's summons to me to kill the members of Team Seven, seek my out, and assassinate me as well.

"For exact evidence, here is the Root mission roster, and here is a testimonial from one of the Root members who had been assigned to that mission. Does this evidence persuade the Council?"

As before, all the Clans responded affirmative. But when they turned to the Elders…then the argument started.

Naruto watched with grim satisfaction as Tsunade systematically tore down Danzo's defense for his claim on the Hokage's hat, and then as she tore down each of Danzo's Elders when they tried to defend his, and their, actions. It was kind of enjoyable to watch, since Danzo's Elders had been chosen for their support of Danzo rather than their political, diplomatic, or rhetoric skills. Tsunade and Genshi had had five years to prepare themselves for reclaiming the Village.

Eventually, the Elders were cornered into accepting Tsunade as the new Hokage, though she did end up with the title of Rokudaime since Danzo had, despite his illegitimacy, been the Godaime.

After that, Tsunade put forward a vote of no confidence in the Elders, which was carried by the Clan Heads. The current Elders were stripped of office, and five new candidates were named, brought in, and sworn in. If all of Konoha hadn't been anticipating such an event, it probably would have been a paradigm shift to shake the earth. As it was, nobody was surprised that the last dregs of Danzo's supporters were being ousted from their positions of power.

It was all well and good that they were cinching in their victory, Naruto thought, but all of that politicking was starting to make him sleepy. And they were only just finishing the Council!

In fact, Tsunade was just about to close the Council session when Hinata placed a hand palm down on the table deliberately, leaning forward ever so slightly to indicate her desire to speak.

"The Hokage recognizes the Hyuuga Clan Head," Tsunade said formally. Hinata inclined her head toward her.

"Thank you, Hokage-sama. Honored Council-members, I have my own matter to set before you." Hinata's voice was steady and the stutter that had plagued her for most of her childhood had been smoothed out. Naruto was glad to see that the Council listened to her with the respect befitting her position. She continued: "As you all well know, much of the Hyuuga Clan chose to side with the pretender-Hokage Danzo. Many of those Hyuuga were killed during the Battle of _Chi no Mori_, including my father, the former Clan Head. My… my sister also sided with Danzo, and is imprisoned along with the other Danzo-supporters. I am the last of the Hyuuga Head Family, and thus have inherited the position of Clan Head. But I am not fit for, nor do I desire, the position. The Hyuuga Clan is like unto a new Clan, having lost more than half our number and being shaken by betrayals. So with this new Hyuuga Clan, let there also rise a new leadership. I abdicate my position as Hyuuga Clan Head in favor of my cousin, Hyuuga Neji."

Naruto only just managed to keep his jaw from dropping—this wasn't expected at all! And it seemed like Naruto wasn't the only one surprised, some of the other Council members were looking a little shocked. There was a squeak from one of the desk ninja in the corner. Tsunade, however, was merely nodding, as if she'd seen it coming.

"The Hokage acknowledges the transferal of the title of Hyuuga Clan Head from Hyuuga Hinata to Hyuuga Neji."

It took a little longer for the other Clans to voice their own acknowledgements, but they all did. Hinata nodded to each solemnly. "In relation to this transferal, I also wish the Council to witness the removal of the Caged Bird Seal from Hyuuga Neji."

_This _pronouncement made even more of a stir than her abdication. Not only was it unheard of for a Caged Bird Seal to be removed—there was even speculation as to whether such a feat was even possible—but for Hinata to remove the Seal in front of non-Hyuuga was very surprising. Allowing all the ninja Clan Heads to see the removal process was as good as teaching them the process itself—once they saw it, they would know how, and could do it at will.

Hinata calmly added: "It will be my last action as Hyuuga Clan Head to remove the Caged Bird Seal from all remaining, Konoha-loyal, Branch Family members. It is my hope that the surviving Hyuuga live in peace and equality, no matter which family they were born to."

"In recognition of the trust my cousin has placed in me," Neji said, speaking for the first time in the council room, "As the Clan Head, I will hold to her vision."

"The survivors of the Hyuuga Clan are in agreement with the wishes of Hinata-sama and Neji-sama," said the old Hyuuga who had accompanied them in, his voice an old man's crackle, but thick with authority.

Tsuande nodded regally at them, and voiced her presence as a witness. The rest of the Council followed suit, and the other Clan Heads watched solemnly, but with interest, as Hinata performed the removal, which was more complicated than any of them could have guessed. In the end, though, Neji was standing proudly with an unblemished forehead, Hinata had a slight tremble of exertion to her hands, and the Hyuuga Clan was reborn.

Compared to that, Naruto reflected, the war tribunal was nothing.


	4. Chapter 4

_TH: I hope that nuclear problem in Japan sorts itself out- explosions and meltdowns are not a happy thing. At least a bunch of other countries are offering/giving aid; it's good that we can actually suck it up and act like decent human beings every once in a while. Ganbatte, Nippon!  
_

_Thanks to MakalaMea for betaing.  
_

* * *

**Horizons

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**.IV.

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Sakura smirked as the diplomatic team from Suna left, the youngest of their number darting occasional, nervous glances back behind them.

"I think that went rather well," she remarked to the three young men who stood and watched with her. Sasuke snorted derisively. Naruto chuckled, mischief thick in the sound.

Gaara stood silently, as he was wont to do. He watched the departing team thoughtfully. It was his reaction Sakura was most interested in.

Having proved himself a great friend of Konoha, both during the war against Root-Akatsuki and in the months after, Gaara was well respected (and even liked, though the concept still seemed to surprise him) in the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Tsunade, now the Rokudaime Hokage, had given Gaara and his brother and sister political asylum in the Village after the Battle of _Chi no Mori_. As things began to settle down in Konoha and in the rest of the ninja world, she and some of the ninja who were closest to Gaara, Kankurou, and Temari had begun to run a sort of… publicity campaign for the Ichibi Jinchuuriki. Gaara's father, the Kazekage, had spread some very debilitating rumors about Gaara, making most of the world believe the redhead to be some sort of crazed, blood-thirsty monster. Tsunade, Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and a few others had begun to take it upon themselves to spread the good word about Gaara and his siblings.

If anything, it would make the Kazekage tread very carefully in his dealings with Konoha. The three Sand siblings likely knew enough of Suna's secrets to supply Tsunade with blackmail material for decades.

The Suna diplomatic ninja who had just taken their leave of Konoha were the latest in a newly established flow of discourse between the two Hidden Villages. They were the first to actually see physical proof that Gaara was, in fact, a perfectly civilized member of Konoha's population.

The first team to come got hints. The second got rumors affirming those hints. The third glimpsed Kankurou practicing his puppetry. The fourth was given quarters in a building that had been partially sculpted from sand, packed tightly enough so that it was essentially stone. The presence of the building was a daily reminder of the rumors that the Ichibi Jinchuuriki, with his ability to manipulate sand, lived and worked in the Village.

This, the fifth team, was blithely introduced to Gaara as they _just_ _happened _to run into the Sand siblings during one of the diplomatic tours of the Village, which had _just happened _to be led by Team Seven who _just happened _to be among those who called Gaara 'friend'.

The assorted looks of terror and terror-valiantly-hidden-behind-a-politician's-mask that had bloomed on the Suna team's faces had been so amusing. But Team Seven had been well-trained, and they didn't laugh. Out loud. Much.

Having no reason to react negatively, and a very heavy diplomatic reason to not react at all, the team had swallowed their fear of Gaara and, somewhat helplessly, allowed Team Seven to invite the redhead to join the tour—_Oh, he was a former Suna nin, before the Kazekage released him from his oaths_. _You would have so much to talk about, and he could add a Sand-ninja's prospective to the tour! _They hadn't had the presence of thought to formulate an excuse, being too nonplussed by their sudden face-to-face encounter with the Demon of Suna. It was all they could do to sound gracious while assuring Team Seven that no, they wouldn't mind at all if he tagged along.

Later, one of them, the leader, had rallied enough to comment pointedly: "It is strange to see one of our former comrades in Konoha after the affair with Danzo; the False Hokage was not kind to our Village."

"Danzo was not kind to Jinchuuriki, either," Naruto said cheerfully enough. "He wanted to use us like you'd use a kunai, and with about just as much concern for our lives… and kunai aren't alive, so that tells you that. Anyway, the Kazekage had already released Gaara from his oaths to Suna by the time Danzo started hunting us down, so Gaara banded together with Genshi. We had a similar goal. Afterwards, Gaara just stuck around… he was our friend."

It was a deft hand, that comment, and somewhat surprising coming from Naruto, but he was, after all, Konoha's number one most unpredictable ninja. In a very casual manner, he answered the accusation in the Suna nin's voice, let the man know that he, Naruto, was also a Jinchuuriki, and gave Suna a very convenient 'out' in terms of Gaara's status.

With the very definitive evidence of Gaara's immediate presence before them, the Suna ninja could call foul on Konoha, claiming that they were harboring a fugitive from Suna. They could demand Konoha give Gaara back. But that would not go over well, as was first laid down by the hints and rumors that Gaara was a valued member of Konoha's populace.

And nobody in the ninja world wanted a war so soon after this last one.

It was almost disturbing how much fun it was to manipulate people like this. If Sakura wasn't a ninja—by definition sneaky and underhanded—she might have been appalled by how much sadistic glee she'd derived from the whole affair.

To be fair, she hoped that that sadistic glee wasn't the only thing they were getting out of it. That was why she was watching Gaara's reaction so closely.

"Except for that one Genin," the redhead finally said, after the Suna team disappeared around the first bend in the road, "Near the end, they weren't looking at me in with so much fear."

It was true. After a couple days and a few limited (it wouldn't do to scare them off) interactions with Gaara, the older and more canny of the Suna team had been eyeing Gaara with curious and thoughtful looks.

The Ichibi Jinchuuriki looked around at Team Seven.

"I like it when people look at me in something other than outright terror," he said. The completely straight-faced delivery of the line made Naruto laugh.

"Just wait!" he said with typical enthusiasm, "By the time we're through, everyone will like you so much, they'll make you Kazekage! Then we can be Kages together!"

"May all the _kami _have mercy on us," muttered Sasuke.

"Hm," was all Gaara would say, in an introspective, thoughtful tone that made Sakura do a double-take.

Gaara, the Kazekage?

…Well, stranger things had happened. Like Tsunade taking Naruto under her wing to groom as a future Hokage.

Sakura gave a mental shrug—_I'll think about the future when it gets here_—and clapped her hands on Naruto and Sasuke's shoulders. "Hey, it's almost dinnertime. Let's get tempura!"


	5. Chapter 5

_Thanks to MakalaMea for betaing.  
_

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**Horizons

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**.V.

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Upon returning to Konoha after a mission, Itachi's first action, even before reporting in to the Hokage, was to visit the Memorial Stone. It had been his habit before Danzo's reign, and now that Konoha had been restored to Genshi, it was his habit again.

Part of the ritual was to pay homage to his fallen comrades, to tell them he had completed one more mission to keep the Village safe, and to reaffirm his vow to continue where they had left off. Another part was to honor the lives he'd taken in keeping that promise. To remember that each man or woman he killed on his missions probably had family or comrades themselves, who would now be mourning them before their own monuments. It was Itachi's hope that doing these things would keep him sane, keep him human.

It appeared to have worked so far.

Itachi was halfway through the long meadow that carpeted the land in front of the Memorial Stone with thick grass when he realized he was not alone. Someone was already at the Stone, paying her own respects.

Itachi almost turned and left; though the park the Memorial Stone stood in was technically public property, the nature of the place was such that it was possible to intrude on someone there. Grief was, after all, a private thing for many people.

But even as he realized that someone was there, he realized who it was, and felt neither the obligation nor the desire to leave.

Sakura, he was sure, would not begrudge him his presence, and he did not mind hers.

She was standing in front of the Stone, her hands clasped behind her back. At her side, a small pug dog wearing a vest and a _hitai-ate _sat on his haunches. Both were staring at the Stone. He didn't think they spoke.

They certainly didn't when he stepped up on Sakura's other side, his eyes on the Stone. The silence was gentle, though.

Itachi took one of the sticks of incense that sat in a bowl beside the Stone and lit it with a tiny _Katon jutsu_. He put his palms together, the stick held horizontal between his thumbs and the sides of his hands, and bowed to the Memorial Stone. He straightened after a moment, wisps of the incense twining around him. His gaze ran over the Stone, catching here and there on familiar names before moving on, touching each name.

Then, he remembered each of the men and each of the women he had killed in this latest mission he'd completed. If he'd seen their face, he held the image of it in his mind briefly, before letting it drift away, releasing with it his guilt.

After, he bowed again, and bent to place the burning incense into a holder in front of the Stone.

It was then that Sakura spoke.

"Tsunade said you found the scrolls," she said, "Did you destroy them?"

Before, Itachi had known little about Haruno Sakura in his Other Past. He had known her skills, her standing as a ninja, that she'd had a crush on his little brother, and that she had killed Sasori. He was beginning to understand her as a person now.

After the Battle of _Chi no Mori, _he had told Sakura of the truth of his past—that he had been thrust back through time. Amazingly, she had believed him. More amazingly still, she hadn't fled from him. He still remembered from time to time what she'd said to him afterward—_We're Teammates, Itachi-san._

"Yes," he answered her question presently. She half turned her head, enough to look him in the face with one green eye.

"Good," she said, a small smile playing at the corner of her mouth. Then she fell silent again, and Itachi's attention wandered down to Pakkun, the pug still seated on Sakura's other side. The _ninken_'s eyes were still fixed on the Memorial Stone, and Itachi didn't have to trace the angle of the gaze to know which name.

"It is good to see you again, Pakkun," Itachi said sincerely. The pug looked up at him.

"Itachi-san," Pakkun said easily—having been Kakashi's Teammate on several missions, Itachi had grown to know all of the late Hatake's dogs. The pug's nose flared subtly. "You smell of blood."

At this, Sakura turned to face him fully, scanning him with a medic's eyes. "Are you injured? Do you need treatment?"

He shook his head. "None of it is mine."

"You just came from a mission," Pakkun said. It was a question couched in a statement.

"Yes," Itachi replied. Sakura blinked at him, then gave him a second look, this time taking note of the fact that he wore his uniform and that it bore evidence of rough travel.

"You've just returned? And this is the first place you went?"

He lifted one shoulder in a noncommittal response. Sakura's expression of disbelief flickered into one of wry amusement.

"You Uchiha," she huffed in mock exasperation. Itachi quirked an eyebrow at her. She echoed his half-shrug.

"This. It's like the nonverbal version of 'hn.'"

This caused a flicker of amusement to flit across Itachi's eyes. He said: "Hn."

Sakura was silent for one beat, and then she burst into laughter. Even Pakkun snorted in amusement. Itachi smiled.

When he'd first gotten to know Sakura in this timeline, she had been six-years-old and painfully shy. He'd tutored her, alongside Naruto and Sasuke, in a few of the ninja arts. They'd all looked up to him as a big brother.

"I come here after all of my missions," he said to fill the silence that fell when her laughter faded.

They'd viewed him as a brother, but then came the Fall. And then the next time Itachi saw any of them was when they were twelve or thirteen. Long absence coupled with circulating stories of his exploits had resulted in a distance between them. And they'd all grown older, changed as people do when they grow from children to adults. Naruto and Sakura treated him with a sort of deference, a respectful distance. It had made him a little sad, but he had known the reason for it and couldn't fault them. He'd let them have their distance because, if he was honest with himself, he didn't know what else to do. Making friends was not, apparently, something they put on the list of skills they gave to prodigies.

His hand had been somewhat forced, in this instance. Sakura had heard him talk to Danzo in the midst of battle, had heard Danzo mock Itachi with Itachi's own secrets. She'd heard enough that to not tell her would be a foolish mistake. She was curious enough that she would search the answers out herself, if he didn't tell her, and that would have caused a whole new set of problems. What if she went around asking questions, and in doing so aroused someone else's curiosity, and then that person went out asking questions, and so on? Better to just bring her in on the secret, let her know and make sure she understood that she couldn't breathe a word of it to anyone.

"Oh," she replied, nodding as if she understood. Itachi thought that she probably did.

He had been somewhat surprised to find that being forced to trust Sakura did not rankle much. Perhaps that was because he essentially already did trust her. In a way, she was already a friend.

Friend.

His jaw worked subtly, as if he were rolling the word over his tongue. It tasted vaguely foreign, but sweet.

Yes. Haruno Sakura was his friend.

Itachi stood next to his friend, thought of eating dinner with his family tonight, and breathed in the woodsy scent of Konoha. And smiled.

* * *

_TH: The end. Yep, this wraps up my "Dreams" universe. I won't exactly say they lived happily ever after- there's always some kind of conflict to deal with- but they got pretty darn close._

_Those of you who wish I had put in romance can read between the lines for Naruto/Hinata. And Itachi/Sakura, if you like. If you don't like, then they're just friends. Whichever way you want to interpret it. I left it kind of open._

_I _will_ be writing more in the Naruto fandom. I'm not sure when my next story will start, or what it'll be about, but if you're interested/curious, keep an eye on my profile._

_BIG BIG thank-you to all of you who reviewed Perchance to Dream; Ravel, Unravel; Shades; and Horizons. I really appreciate the feedback, and I like hearing from you guys._

_And another massive thanks to MakalaMea, who gets to fix my mistakes :P Much obliged!  
_


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